Thursday, May 6, 2010

Here's an update on my post from last Friday about the Indian "holy man", Prahlad Jani, who claims to have neither eaten nor drank anything whatsoever for over 70 years and was under strict observation for the last 15 days in an Indian hospital to study his claim.

If this turns out to be true, it's truly amazing. As for my take on this whole thing, "skeptical" is an understatement--to say the least.

Doctors from the Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences (DIPAS), which operates under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and Sterling Hospital held a press conference to mark the end of the observations on 82-year-old Prahalad Jani who claims to have not eaten or drank anything in the last 70 years.

The 15-day observation, which ended on Thursday, has thrown up no specific information which DIPAS is “ready to declare”. But the test results agree with those of a 2003 study on him, said sources.

“During the observation period, Jani did not consume anything and did not pass stool. The only contact with any form of fluid that he had was during gargling and bathing activities during the study,” said DIPAS director Dr Ilavazhagan.

“I must once again clarify that we have done the study for 15 days and cannot really comment for or against Jani’s claim of remaining without food or water for several years,” he continued.